Improvement in horse-rakes



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'MOSES N. WARD, OF LINNEUS, ASSIGNOR TO FREDERICK II. OOOMBS, OF BANGOR,

MAINE.

IMPROVEMENT IN HORSE-RAKES.

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of thesame.

To a-ZZ whom it may concern .Be it known that I, MOSES N. WARD, ofLinneus, in the county of Aroostook, and State of Maine, have lnvented anew and improved Horse Hay-Rake; and I d0 hereby declare that thefollowing is a full and exact description thereof, reference being hadto the ac; companying drawings, and to the letters of reference markedthereon.

In said drawings- A A are the wheels.

B, the axle.

C G, .the shafts.

D D, independent arms.

E, the rake-head.

F F, vertical rods` G G, cylindrical bands, or rings.

H, movable cross-piece.

I, stiff spring.

K, seat.

L, the brake.

M, cross-piece on arms D D.

a, cross-piece.

b-ZI, hinges.

c c c c, raking-teeth.

d d d (l, holding-teeth.

e e, spiral` springs.

fj, nuts.

g, cross-piece.

h, axis of brake.

'i t' t t', standards.

l, connecting-rod.

fm, lever.

n, guide.-

p, stop:

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I willnow describe the construction and #operation thereof.

I provide two ordinary wheels A A, and attach the same to the ordinaryaXle,.B.

I provide the ordinary shafts, C O, frame the same together withcross-pieces, c g, and attach said shafts 'to the axle B.

I provide the seat K, and attach the same to the cross-pieces a g, bymeans of the four standards, 'Lit' i, one of which is concealed by theseat K, in the drawings.

I also attach the whiiiie-tree, lr, to the cross-piece a.

The independent arms D D, I attach to the crosspiece a., by means ofhinges b I), or other suitable contrivance, which will allow the upward'movement of the independent arms, at the rear end.

The arms D D, at about midway of their length, rest,lby gravity, uponthe axle B, as shown in .the drawings, and therefore are free to rise,or are preyented from descending, as occasion may demand, independentlyof the vertical movement of the axle, due to inequalities of the surfaceofthe field.

I construct the turned rake-head E from' eight or ten to twenty feet inlength. 4

I construct the vertical rods F E, with their cylindrical bands G G, toreceive the rake-head.

I then place the rake-head E in the bands G G, and provide the rake-headwith its raking-teeth c c c c, 'and its holding-teeth d l d d.

I construct the teeth o c c c, and secure them in the rake-head asfollows:

I pass the ends of thewirethrough two perforations in the rake-head,straining the middle portion of the wire close to the rake-head. I coilthe wire twice or thrice around the rake-head, and then communicate theproper curve to the wire to form the-teeth c c c c.

I pass the vertical rods Il F through the ends of the independent arms DD,and cross-piece M.

. I provide and place the spiral springs e e on the bars .F E. I thenpass the movable crosspiece Il over the ends ofthe vertical rods F F,and secure the whole by means of the nuts fj', as shown in theaccompanying drawings.'

I provide the stiff spring I, and attach one en'd to the crossLpiece c.The other end bears down upon the rake-head E.,

I provide the brake L, axis h, connecting-rod l, and lever m, and attachthe same as shown in`the drawing. The brake L, plays on the axis h, andmoves the rod l, and lever m, and brakes up the rake.

I attach the guide n to the seat K, and bend down the forward end of theguide, as shown in the draw# ing. I attach but one stop to the guide n,to wit, the forward stop, p.

In operation, the various parts of the machine being then in theposition shown in. the drawings, and the machine being drawn forward,the weight ofthe rakehead and its attachments, overcomes the upwardpressure of the spiral springs c e, the rake-head drops, and the teethtouch the ground. The downward pressure of the stiff'spring I issupplied to aid in obtaining this result. The vertical rods F E playfreely through the cross-piece M and independent arms D D, so that ingoing over rough and uneven ground, one end of the rake-head will dropmore than the other, `until the teeth c c c c touch the lowest ground,and so that when, in going over small ridges, the rear of the mav chineis elevated, the teeth are still kept in contact with the ground. Vhen,however, in passing over a ridge7 or-otherwise, the teeth bear too hardagainst the ground, the vertical rods F F play upward through the arms DD and cross-piece M, until the rings G G press up against the arms D D.

The arms D D then rise at the rear end, andthe rake-head E also-rises,so that the teeth pass freely over the ground. 4

In case any hay is lost or left behind by the rake, the machine issimply backed to take it up. The teeth c c c c engage with the grond asthe machine is backed, the independent arms D D are raised, the rakeheadE'turns in the bands G G, until -the teethare re- .versed, the teeththen slide over the ground until the -jhay is reached,'the machineisthen driven forward;

the teeth engage again with the ground, the arms D D are again raised,and the rake-head and teeth resume the position shown in the drawings.

These movements are entirely automatic,'and, indeed, the brake Ais notactuated at all by the driver, except in forming the windrows.

As the hay isv lgathered by the teeth c c c c, it is pressed upward, andheld between the raking-teeth c c c c and holding-teeth d al d d.

When sufficient is gathered, the brake L is pressed forward, and pastthe stop p, by the-driver; the rakehead E turns in the rings Gr G; thehay' is dropped, and the windrow formed.

. The short arm of the lever L, being connected, by the rod l, with thelong arm of the lever m, the leverageis very great, and a triingpressure on the lever L is sufficient to break up the rake.

The arrangement of the rake-head behind the wheels possesses severalpeculiar advantages.

First, each machine maybe supplied with two or more lake-heads, ofdifferent lengths, say, from eight to ten, and from fifteen to twentyfeet each. The

shorter rake-head being adapted for rough and uneven ground, and thelonger for meadows and prairie lands. With the latter, two horses mightbe required. The rake-heads may be readily changed, or removed forrepairs, by unscrewing' the nuts ff. Where two rake-heads accompany onemachine, however, hinged clasps may be substituted for the bands G G,and the heads may be removable at the clasps.

Second, the rake-head is made to project ou each side of the wheels A A.The machine, therefore, being driven parallel with a wall or ditch,will. rake close to said wall orditch, and lthis obviateswthe neces-lsity of raking the hay several feet away from the walls, 85e., withhand-rakes, as is now common. Themachine also can be backed againststumps, and into corners of fences, to pick up hay, the rake-headreversing and recovering, as before described. In such cases, the

endsof the arms D D, projecting a tride beyond the rake-head, act asbuffers, to prevent inj ury'to the machine.

Third, the rake-head being in the rear ot the wheels, the wheels steadythe machine, and prevent any considerable lateral motionof the machine,and the throw ing of the shafts against the horse. lThe line of draughtis also the best adapted for economy of horse-power, and thecomfort ofthe horse;xand the machine is so balanced that the strength of the horseis exerted simply in hauling the rake, and is not wasted in carrying theweight of the shafts, and of the driver, forward of the wheels. y

' What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by LettersPatcnt,.is

l.' In a horse hay-rake, whose rake-head is placed-y behind the wheels,combining such head with levers or arms, Whose fulcra are forward of theaxle, and which are thus free to rise and fall independent of the axle,substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. The combination with the rake-head E, of the swinging-arms or leversD, so hung that when at their lowest position, .they may rest at abouttheir centres, on the carriageLaXle, substantially as described.

3. The stiff spring I, in combination with the rakehead E.

4.. The vertical rods F F, bands G G, and spiral springs e c, incombination with the rake-head E.

5. The combination and arrangement with the swinging-levers D, oftheraking-teeth, in such manner that the act of backing shallautomatically lift the levers and reverse the position of the teeth, andthe forward movement bring them again into operative action,substantially as described.

6. The combination with the raking-teeth, of the holding-teeth,substantially as and for the'purnose described. MOSES N. WARD.

Witnesses: JASPER HUTcHINGs FRED. H. OooMBs.

